When Wayne was a Whippersnapper: The end of Point Breeze

Monday

Dec 31, 2012 at 4:00 AM

By Paul Locher Staff Writer

SMITHVILLE -- The first year of the Point Breeze Chautauqua in Smithville proved so successful, drawing attendance from throughout the northeast Ohio region, its management made the decision to improve and enlarge the grounds, as well as expand its schedule beyond 10 days.

Constructed immediately was a large frame auditorium with a roof and open sides, as well as a dining hall with picnic tables and benches for those who attended. The program of speakers and entertainers was enlarged to 16 days, thus encompassing three weekends, instead of two.

In keeping with the popular societal tenets of Victorian times in the United States, Point Breeze placed an emphasis on lectures, music, fresh air and a return to nature as a means of getting people out of smoke-choked cities. It flourished in the days before radio or television, when families found it enjoyable to simply spend time outdoors on pleasant summer afternoons or evenings.

In addition to having its own resident orchestra to entertain those in attendance, Point Breeze had its own baseball team, which took on all comers. Typically the team, made up of well-known players from the area, won.

Icie Moore Eberly and John M. Eberly, children of Professor Eberly, were very much involved with the chautauqua meetings. Together they continued its management after the death of the professor in 1906.

Exactly why Point Breeze closed when a number of other chautauquas continued to be popular is a matter of conjecture, but it was probably due to a variety of causes.

One reason could have been its determined sense of

independence, in that the local management scheduled all of its own speakers and entertainment. Other chautauquas used a formulaic group of set personalities that traveled a circuit from one camp meeting to the next during the summer season, and it typically cost less to buy a "package" of entertainers and speakers.

But, probably the greatest reason was the growing popularity of the automobile, which made it possible for people to travel farther distances to Canton, Akron and Cleveland for entertainment of the same sort. In addition, the nation's economy was placed on a footing for World War I at that time.

After Point Breeze closed, the grove was purchased by a farmer named Mr. Martin, who felled the huge trees there and turned the site into farmland. It was later acquired by A.C. Ramseyer to increase his potato acreage. Ramseyer had been in charge of the featured Farmer's Day at the chautauqua from 1910 to 1915. Today the Wayne County Schools Career Center occupies much of what was once the chautauqua site.

Source: "History of Smithville & Surrounding Area" by Joseph Irvin

Reporter Paul Locher can be reached at 330-682-2055 or plocher@the-daily-record.com.